Outlook: The girls are well-equipped to defend their title as they return the nucleus from their championship team, while the boys will try to become a factor in D-II after a down period over the last four years. Last season the girls won the title with 118 points, a whopping 49 ahead of runner-up MV, and 14 of those championship athletes are back this season, including defending 400, 800 and 1,600 champion Parker (now just a sophomore). As a bonus, the Bears have three impressive freshmen in Danis, Laskowsky and Scannell. “This is a strong, balanced and now (an) experienced returning team,” the coaches said. “With the addition of some talented newcomers, the girls should be one of the contenders again this year.” The boys will follow the lead of Brassard, the junior who has established himself as one of the premier distance runners in the state. He won an individual title in cross country in the fall and both the 1,500 and 3,000 events in indoor track this winter. “For us to have any chance at being an impact at the state meet, Jeremy has to lead the way,” the coaches said. The boys have a good nucleus in the sprint, distance and jumping events, but need to improve on the throwing events, “a clear weakness right now.”

Outlook: The Generals have a good amount of returning and experienced athletes who are providing great leadership for the new talent. The team is working incredibly hard every day to get in top physical condition. The team has already come together and has great determination and talent and the coaches are looking forward to a very successful season. This year the Generals are focusing on setting personal goals for each meet. With the team’s continued drive, determination and hard work, the Generals will command their own destiny this season.

Outlook: The MV boys are capable of scoring in almost every event, led by Alicea, among the top in the division in throws, jumps and sprints. Expect Lindonen, Polichronopoulos and Phillips to also contend with the state’s best. With three strong relay squads adding to the depth, the Pride is looking to improve on last year’s finish. The girls have fewer numbers than in years past, but the talent is still there, led by the throwers (Adejuyibge is the defending champ in both discus and shot put). Ramsey qualified for New Englands last year in sprints, while Taban, who was injured last season, should be a force in both hurdles.

Outlook: The Giants have gotten off to a strong start to the season, led by captains Robinson, Feltham, Rauseo and Morey. Bartlett – who has already qualified for states in the 3,200 – Boesch and Parent lead a strong distance crew, while Robinson, St. Pierre, Svendsen, Kliebenstein and Brooke Solomon lead the sprinters. Brady also has some depth in the throwing events, with Rauseo competing in all three events. Chris Sievers, Christian Khoshatefeh and Matt Fogarty will be contenders in the javelin, and freshmen Peter Dubois and Margaret Kennedy are already scoring in the shot and discus.

Outlook: Although the Falcon boys lost a lot of depth from last year’s championship team, a large group of athletes should keep Bow among the contenders for the title. The girls are well-balanced between the throws, sprints and distance events, and Coach Boyd is hoping the newcomers can fill in the gaps in the jumps. If that comes together, Bow could make a run at the title.

Outlook: While neither the boys nor the girls boast large teams, both of the Kingsmen’s two state qualifiers from last year are returning, including Peters, who finished 10th at the Meet of Champions in the long jump. The Kingsmen are hoping to qualify more athletes for the Division III state meet at the end of the season.

Outlook: The Golden Tornadoes are a well-rounded team, with their only weakness, according to Coach Limoge, their lack of contenders in the distance events. The top returner is Gagne, who finished third in the discus as a freshman at last year’s D-III meet. For the girls, Shepard made an impressive showing at the D-III meet, finishing third in the 300 hurdles and fourth in the triple jump.

Outlook: The Hillcats will try to parlay a sizable rosters (30 boys, 18 girls) into a more successful point-scoring day at the state meet. Coach Else is optimistic that the athletes are ready to take that step. “This is a very large team with lots of enthusiasm and (one that is) willing to do the hard work to be successful,” she said. “We had several point-scoring athletes graduate last year, but I think this group has the athletic ability, training ethic and heart necessary for success.” Montanez will try to better his third-place finish in the 100 at last year’s D-III meet, which was the team’s best finish.

Outlook: Boys: The Hawks hope to best last year’s 10th-place finish by improving on both the track and the field. The coaching staff is excited about the size and depth of the freshman class, which adds depth to the sprints, distance and field events. The coaches are also excited about the enthusiasm and ability displayed by the upperclassmen and hope that this combination of youth and experience will lead to success at the D-III championship. Girls: Last year the Hawks were propelled to third place by a strong showing in the distance events. The program hopes to improve in the sprinting and field events to complement a strong returning core of distance runners.

Outlook: The Cougars have a well-rounded boys’ team with some ability in all events. Their greatest strengths are in the hurdles, jumps and longer distance. They seek to improve the throws and short sprints. The girls’ team is shorter in numbers, but has talent in the javelin, high jump, hurdles, pole vault and long distance.

Outlook: The returning juniors and seniors make the Bears a solid track team, but Winnisquam is still quite young, with 16 freshmen and 13 sophomores on the roster. Winnisquam will look to its younger athletes to help develop its field events and keep the Bears competitive.